Joel Embiid asks ‘what else do I have to do’ to win MVP, says all energy is now focused on ‘bigger picture’ of helping Philadelphia 76ers win NBA championship

MIAMI – Philadelphia 76ers Super star Joel Embiid congratulations Nikola Jokic about winning the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award for a second straight season, adding Tuesday night that there is no “right or wrong” answer among several deserving contenders.

But Embiid also says that, in the future, he will only focus on the “bigger picture” – winning championships.

“No,” Embiid said, when asked if he was surprised when ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Monday that Jokic would win the award again. “I mean, this is something I knew a few weeks ago, maybe even two weeks before the end of the season, after the games against Denver and Milwaukee, and when. [ESPN did its] straw probe or whatever. I just know it won’t happen.

“Obviously, congratulations Nikola. He deserves it. He’s had a great season. There’s no right or wrong. There’s a lot of contenders. It could go either way. Giannis (Antetokounmpo .)), Devin Booker, by far the best team in the league. So I guess, each year is all about whatever you guys decide, whatever fits the story until who is going to win. “

Embiid is one of three finalists for this award for the second year in a row, after collectively calling it the best season of his career – an NBA-best 30.6 points per game, along with 11.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists in a career-high 68 games. .

“I’m not mad,” Embiid said of not winning the MVP (the NBA is expected to make an official announcement of the winner later this week). “It’s been two years in a row where I’ve put myself in that position. It hasn’t happened. It’s almost as if, at this point, it’s anything. Whatever happens, will happen.

“Last year, I campaigned on that. This year, I answered questions when asked, and for the next few years until I retire, it’s almost like… like I said, I wondered what else I had to do to win it and for me it was like, at this point, it’s like whatever.It’s all about concentration, not that I wasn’t focused. focus on the bigger picture, but you know, it’s time to really put all your heart into the bigger picture, which is to win the whole thing.”

Embiid also took to the issue with a comment from The Ringer’s Bill Simmons, who said on a podcast last month “F- Jalen Green“when discussing Green’s candidacy for the All-Rookie Team while playing in the worst league Houston Rockets. (Simmons then tweeted out an explanation of his position).

The media voted on the NBA awards.

“What if Jalen Green was in a position to get a supermax, or I don’t know, show up at All-Star and you have a listener like that, and he has a lot of power,” said Embiid. “[Simmons] can shake many other media members

“I don’t think it’s fair. I don’t think it’s okay. So that’s really the only thing I have to say about those awards.”

Embiid’s hopes of winning this season’s championship hit a significant roadblock on Tuesday night, as the Sixers lost Miami Heat 120-85 in game 5 to land on the 3-2 series hole. They lost only one game to be beaten in the second round of the knockout round for the fourth time in five seasons.

The 76ers looked listless from the start of the opening game, and everyone agreed that was the case after the game, when Miami took the lead and never looked back.

“They were more involved, more physical, making it difficult for us,” said 76ers coach Doc Rivers. “There was a lot of disappointment from all of us tonight.”

More James Harden: “I think we weren’t involved defensively and that slowed our attack speed. We had to get in. We were locked in. Good enough just to play hard. You have to play. You have to be able to think, own by possessing, and we just don’t put enough thinking assets together.”

Embiid spent a long time on the field in the second quarter when he was hit in the right face – which he fractured in Game 6 of the Toronto series – after the Heat backup center Dewayne Dedmon hit the ball when Embiid blocked it and it went straight to his face.

Luckily for the 76ers, Embiid eventually got up and was examined by the team doctors, and he never left the game.

“I don’t think so,” said Embiid, when asked if he was worried he could make his injury worse by playing through it. “Obviously I’m not a specialist. I’m just listening to the doctors. I don’t think so.

“So it’s just about pain tolerance. This is a win-lose situation for me. If I don’t play, you know, I might be called soft. If I play, and I play bad. , so to speak, will probably come up with a bunch of stuff that I guess he’s not good enough at. So it’s all about trying not to be too high or too low and just go out there and really try. dig deep and try to do whatever I can.”

What he and the 76ers have to do now is prevent a home elimination in Game 6 on Thursday.

“I’m pretty confident,” said Embiid.

“We were leading 2-0, [then] We tied it up. We have it in us. We have more ways [to give], and I was not myself. Even in those two wins. I didn’t think I played well. I think my presence on the pitch is huge for us, especially in defence. But on the offensive side, I’m not aggressive at all. I mean, I’m not saying I want to force the issue, but I want to let the game come to me. As you can see, they don’t let the game get to me.

“So I thought, just go back and watch the movie and find a way to really, really have an impact and try to be, try to get back to the dominant self that I could be.”